Instagram Stories are one of the most effective ways to connect with your audience through the Instagram platform. Stories are video, graphics or picture clips that last for 24 hours to be viewed. A snapshot into your life, if you will!

The key to creating engaging content with your audience is to make it useful and relevant to them to get to know you and your business on a personal level. You can further enhance your Stories reach through the use of captions, stickers, hashtags and fonts.

Stories can seem daunting as another content platform to use within Instagram, so I’ve created 40 Instagram Stories Ideas you can use a service-based business owner:

40 Instagram Stories Ideas - Miller Digital

Have you tried out Instagram Reels yet? Here’s 25 Instagram Reels Ideas.

40 Instagram Stories Ideas:

  1. Take your followers on a day in the life of you as an entrepreneur
  2. Show a behind the scenes look at a meeting with a client
  3. Promote your latest social media post and talk about it in depth
  4. Share 3-5 quick tips of your content topics that your audience would find useful
  5. Promote your latest blog post/video/podcast and why they should read/listen/watch it
  6. Share a hack of something in your business or random personal life hack
  7. Show a sneak peek of a new service or product you’re working on
  8. Take a screen recording on your phone of your newest blog post
  9. Share your to-do list at the beginning of each day
  10. Show a behind the scenes peek of your personal life with kids, spouse or pets
  11. Promote your lead magnet/freebie
  12. Share a tutorial or how-to
  13. Ask your audience a question related to their struggles with the service you provide
  14. Show your customer’s successes and results from your services
  15. Create a challenge and encourage your followers to use hashtags to show up in your Stories
  16. Share your morning coffee or tea – people are nosy!
  17. Host a Q&A day for your audience to ask you questions about you
  18. Share a mini training
  19. Show a glimpse of you working on a project for a client
  20. Promote an upcoming blog/podcast/video of yours a few days before it’s published
  21. Share your business owner daily outfits
  22. Reshare old content
  23. Do a daily routine of some kind – your morning routine or evening routine, for example
  24. Show you and your team members working on a project or in a meeting
  25. Give a shoutout to another business that you love that’s in your industry
  26. Ask them directly what they want to hear from you and lead them to respond to your DM’s
  27. Promote an upcoming virtual or in-person event you’re attending or speaking at
  28. Share client testimonials
  29. Do a giveaway or contest through your Stories to reward followers that watch you
  30. Show a few of your favourite products or apps related to your industry
  31. Ask your audience feedback on a poll
  32. Answer FAQ’s from your audience and add it to your Highlights
  33. Promote joining your e-mail list or newsletter
  34. Thank your followers for helping you reach a milestone in your biz
  35. Tell your audience 3 things they may not know about you to build a connection
  36. Promote your other social media accounts for your audience to follow
  37. Share your daily life! Having a rough day? Having a great day? Share it with your audience
  38. Create branded templates in Canva to promote your services or product
  39. Share a screen shot of your desk or working area
  40. Share any mentions of your business or PR from local media or the public

Stories are just another way to engage with your audience online, so try to hop on them at least once a day to connect. Remember, the more you show up online, the more people will view you as an expert in your area!

Still feeling frustrated and overwhelmed with Instagram? I got you, girl. Work directly with me for 1:1 social media and content marketing coaching.

Courtney Miller